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TRANSCRIPT
The Fall of the Roman
Empire
The Decline Begins
• 180 CE Marcus Aurelius (last good emperor) died
• His son, Commodus, took control of Rome
• Commodus was a poor leader, killed by his bodyguard
• Time of disarray follows
Commodus from the
movie Gladiator
Political Problems
• Poor leaders weakened the government
• Frequent fights for power
• Many officials took bribes
• Talented people chose not to serve due to dangers of government life
Nero
Caligula
Empire is expensive
Economic Problems• Farmers losing land to
wealthy
• Famine: There was not enough food to feed people
• Inflation occurred: (Rapidly rising prices) Coins lost value: Less gold put in, people found out Bartering grew: sell goods without using money
• People bought fewer goods, shops closed
• No taxes, no money
Military Problems• Plague (disease) spread
throughout Rome, killing
1 in 10
• Military only in it for
money (mercenaries)
• No money to pay military
= weak military
• Constant threat of
invaders on empire’s
borders
• Weak military, unable to
stop border invasions
Social Problems• Apathy
– Elites stop participating in government and paying taxes
– Commoners grow used to “bread and games” from Emperors
• Labor shortage caused by over reliance on slavery
Where Is Jesus From?
Early Christianity • Arises in Roman
providence of Judea
• Judea allowed
religious tolerance but
still desired
independence
• Messianic traditions
emerge
• Jesus of Nazareth
preaches reform
Judaism
– Emphasis on
simplifying practices
Christianity Spreads
10
He spread Christianity throughout the Mediterranean
-His letters became part of the New Testament in the Bible
-Followers called Christians-Disciples preach the messages of Christianity throughout the Roman world-Peter established Christianity in Rome itself-Paul played the most influential role in spreading Christianity-Leaders in the church begin to emerge – Clergy
Christians Oppressed
• Romans were not tolerant towards Christians because:• they refused to honor the emperor with sacrifices• they refused to worship Roman gods to protect the
state • Also maybe because they were recruiting
• Christians were used as scapegoats, blamed for social and economic problems•Many Christians became martyrs- or people who suffer or die for their beliefs
•However, Christianity continued to spread due to the fact that all people were welcome
11
Early Christian Church
-Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity and issued the Edict of Milan in A.D. 313.
12
-The Edict granted freedom of worship to all citizens of the Roman empire-Constantine also regulates church teaching with the Nicene Creed- A statement of Christian beliefs
Structure of the Church
“The Roman Catholic Clergy”
Bishop Bishop Bishop (regional leader)
Pope/Patriarch (only 1- oversees church doctrine )
DiocesePriest
+Community
DiocesePriest
+Community
DiocesePriest
+Community
DiocesePriest (local
leader) +
Community13
Rome incorporates its own love of Hierarchy, and organization into
the churches structure.
F.A.Q’sHow is Catholicism different from
Christianity
• It’s not, Catholicism is
Christianity’s first organized church,
Catholic means universal
Why does my church look
different/teacher different things than
what you are talking about?
• Today many churches have broken
away from the Catholic Church and
it’s practices/teachings. But until the
16th Century there was only one
Christian Church in Europe- The
Roman Catholic one.
Does Roman Catholicism replace Jesus’s
teaching with Roman propaganda?
• Mostly no, none of Jesus’s original
messages would have changed, but unity
of belief and loyalty were emphasized
“The Roman Catholic
Clergy”
Bishop Bishop Bishop (regional
leader)
Pope/Patriarch (only 1- oversees church
doctrine )
DiocesePriest
+Community
DiocesePriest
+Community
DiocesePriest (local
leader) +
Community
Nicene Creed• I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth,
and of all things visible and invisible.
• And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, begotten
of the Father before all worlds; God of God, Light of Light, very God
of very God; begotten, not made, being of one substance with the
Father, by whom all things were made.
• Who, for us men for our salvation, came down from heaven, and was
incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the virgin Mary, and was made man;
and was crucified also for us under Pontius Pilate; He suffered and was
buried; and the third day He rose again, according to the Scriptures;
and ascended into heaven, and sits on the right hand of the Father; and
He shall come again, with glory, to judge the quick and the dead;
whose kingdom shall have no end.
• And I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Lord and Giver of Life; who
proceeds from the Father [and the Son]; who with the Father and the
Son together is worshipped and glorified; who spoke by the prophets.
• And I believe one holy catholic and apostolic Church. I acknowledge
one baptism for the remission of sins; and I look for the resurrection of
the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
Dividing the Empire• Diocletian felt that the
only way to save the
empire was to divide it in
half
• Created two empires:
Western and Eastern
• Western Empire: Europe/
North Africa and city of
Rome
• Eastern Empire: Turkey/
Asia and city of
Byzantium
• Two emperors, emperor in
charge of Rome was senior
Constantine• First Christian emperor
• Attempted reforms
• Main reform: sons had to follow fathers’ trade
• Rome continued to decline
• Constantine moved the
capital from Rome to city
of Byzantium
(Constantinople)
• City name changed to
Constantinople (today is
Istanbul)
Current Day
Rome invaded
• Western Empire unable to
hold off German tribes on
its borders
• Ostrogoths, Visigoths,
Franks, Vandals, Saxons
• German tribes wanted
warmer area, Roman
riches, and to flee the
Huns
The Fall
• Augustulus was defeated
in 476 CE
• For this reason, this date is
given as the fall of the
Western Roman Empire
• Western Empire was
divided into many
kingdoms that adopted
many of the customs of
Rome
Eastern Roman Empire
• Although the Western
Empire fell in 476 CE,
the Eastern Roman
Empire continued to
prosper for 1,000 more
years
• Became known as the
Byzantine Empire